Fractured Space Updated Preview

It’s been about a year since we last previewed Fractured Space, and it’s still in alpha. But with 35 updates under Edge Case’s belts and a year of development under Early Access, we figured we’d have another look at it!

It’s best described as a multiplayer online battle arena (MOBA) set in space, with each player controlling a giant capital ship. There are currently two game modes, Frontline and Conquest, but there is also the beginnings of a single-player mode, The Proving Grounds.

This is the most obvious change since the last preview and acts as a tutorial. It doesn’t take long to run through, and lets you know the basics very well. However, it doesn’t truly prepare you for playing against other players.

Weapons testing against an indestructible asteroid

In Conquest, you have to capture the enemy’s base, while they try to do the same to you. There are also mining stations scattered amongst the seven sectors, which are your key to winning as they act like forward stations, allowing you to warp jump to them from your home base. The other thing to bear in mind during a match is the Gamma Station, it is a big mining station in the centre sector of the map, which unlocks every five minutes. Once it is captured, it will give your team a huge boost of resources, though it will lock once more for someone else to capture next time (or you to capture again!).

Gamma is in orbit over a star with a very weak gravitational pull

Available once you reach level five through experience gained in Conquest, the aim of Frontline, a recent addition, is to capture the enemy base. You’re randomly assigned a ship, and rather than being split into different sectors, you are able to fly straight from your base to the enemy base. There are three mining stations in the middle to capture, but if you reach the time limit of 12 minutes, it becomes a race to sudden death. Respawns are disabled, and your base won’t be able to repair you. It really adds an edge to the game and wildly changes what kind of strategy you use.

In both modes, the resources you gather by capturing mining stations allow you to upgrade weapons, armour or utility, every three levels. These control how much damage you deal, how much you can take, and how long cooldowns are.

I fired everything just to take this screenshot

There are a few different types of ship, as you might expect from a MOBA. There are big destroyers and faster support ships, each with their own purpose and handling. Although your Colossus will soak up damage, you would be foolhardy to take on a couple of Hunters (faster attack craft) with a lightly armoured Protector.

The key to winning matches is teamwork. There are no voice comms, but you can type to your teammates using the chat box which is always on the screen. Thankfully, developer Edge Case Games have taken slow typers into account, as whenever you jump to another area, it tells everyone on your team, and lets you know when they head to another area too. This way, you can coordinate your takeover attempts.

If you bring up the map, it allows you to select a jump area, and also shows you the rough position of enemy ships. Do you defend your mining stations or go for a full frontal assault on the enemy mining stations? Doing either alone is always a risk, as the enemy might have arranged an ambush -- if you’re in a ship with low armour, you’re in for a rough time.

There's also Pioneer, Disruptor, Interceptor, Raven -- and a ton more ship types!

The ship loadouts and crew compliments are customisable, and if you’re willing to use premium currency you can collect all the crew you want. None of the premium ones appear to do anything that the non-premium ones do, so it’s purely an aesthetic choice. Though they do talk to you during battles, so perhaps not entirely aesthetic; it’s not just banter either, as they will warn you when you should turn the ship to avoid taking damage to your now-unarmoured starboard flank, or when you can upgrade.

You can purchase new ships through the tech tree, which has been expanded since its implementation. Using experience points, you can unlock new ships -- but you have to unlock the first ship in a branch before you can unlock the next! So if you want a specific ship, you’ll have to save and plan.

Each ship is designed beautifully. Not in a sleek, sexy, smooth way like Star Trek’s USS Voyager, either. These are giant ships like Battlestar Galactica, crewed by theoretically a thousand people -- in comparison Voyager had 150. There are weapons turrets scattered about the hull, and in places you can see past the armoured sections of the hull and can make out some tiny details.

That doesn't mean that some of them are NOT sleek and sexy...

As you might expect, the amount of fun you’re going to have will depend on the amount of people available to play with, and how fair they’re going to play. I had a lot of fun with Fractured Space, and didn’t come across any griefers. Whilst you’re waiting for the teams to be populated, it’s not uncommon to find people firing at each other -- though death is impossible in the warm-ups. It’s also not uncommon for people to just fly around and push each other. In huge capital ships, being squished against a mining station, or trying to do a 360 degree flip, can be almost as entertaining as playing a match. You don’t get any XP, though…

Whilst not in a match, everyone can work together!

It’s great to see the progress since our last preview. I’m certainly looking forward to playing a lot more.